When the butterfly emerges from the cocoon, it transforms itself. Having a positive impact on the artists we work with and audiences who watch us in end is our goal.
Cindy Heen has dedicated her life to dance. She started at the young age of 3 and in 2013 she received her BA and Minor in Dance from the University of Central Florida. She continued her education where she received her MFA in Dance and Choreography from Mills College in CA. Her passion for dance continues today by teaching dance at UCF, judging and teaching with Sheer Elite International, and choreographing for many studios, competitions, and concerts. Recently she set a contemporary work at Rollins College, and has choreographed several works for the UCF Dance Concerts. She is an artistic director of her own professional dance company, Emergence Dance. With Emergence she has produced and directed full length works, and she also hosts an annual choreographer showcase. Cindy is the founder of Dance Buddy, which is a line of self care tools made for dancers. She has performed with several companies including: Santa Clara Ballet, Dawn Branch Works, Vixen Talent Productions, Emotions Dance, Seaworld, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, and many more. Cindy has been a school teacher for 5 years, and a dance teacher for 17 years. Being a teacher, and advocate for the arts is what Cindy has dedicated her life to.
Catherine Linder began dancing in Kissimmee, Florida at the age of 11. Throughout the years she trained in ballet, jazz, musical theater, contemporary, and hip hop. Beyond dancing, she has a strong passion for serving her community through arts education. In 2015 she began her own after school arts program, HeARTS Heal, which focused on stimulating student's imaginations to raise awareness on global issues through art and dance. Additionally, she enjoys choreographing for Next Level Dance Studio, and loves the opportunity to connect with students at all levels in the dance world.
Cambria Evans is a Doctor of Physical Therapy by trade, but lives and breathes to dance! Cambria has been trained in theater, dance, and vocal arts since childhood. Early credits include Little Women, High School Musical, Bye-Bye Birdie, and Joseph and the Technicolor Dream Coat. She later received her bachelors of science at University of Florida while simultaneously working on a minor in dance. Through college she performed in the annual showcases with the UF dance program as well as choreographed and performed several of her own works for church. Since moving to Orlando, she has performed with New Element Dance Company, ESOR Jamaican Dance Company Seasons 2015, 2016, and 2017, and Dawn Branch Works production of Eden 2019, and 2020 and at Creative City Festival with David Gabriel in 2018 and Aretuza Ballerina Project in 2019.
I am Angelly Chávez, I am 23 years old, I am from Peru, a lawyer and a professional classical ballet dancer. I discovered my passion for dance at the age of 7 with my first ballet class, from there I did not stop until I finished my studies at the age of 16, graduating as a dancer and starting at 17 years of age to work professionally. in the professional ballet company of Trujillo in Peru, where I continue to be part of the dancer’s company to this day. I have always liked being a versatile dancer, that is why throughout my artistic life I have liked to train myself to continue growing, learning different genres such as jazz, modern dance, contemporary, street jazz, Latin rhythms, among others.
Arianna Fleischman is a native of Jacksonville, Florida. She began dancing at the age of 4, under the direction of Marta Jackson. She also trained extensively under Javier Fernandez, Eugenio Gonzalez, and Luis Abella, who is Abt national training curriculum certified. She is a certified member of The International Dance Council ( CID),a Certified Progressing Ballet Technique teacher, and a ambassador for Apolla Performance.She has attended many summer intensives, including: Fort Wayne Ballet, Milwaukee Ballet, Next Generation Ballet, Ballet MET, Orlando Ballet, and St.Lucie Ballet,, with scholarships to many of these and other various programs. After completing her local training,at the age of 18, she relocated to join Milwaukee Ballet's Pre Professional program under the direction of Rolando Yanes. She then joined Fort Wayne Ballet for their 2020 season under Karen Gibbons-Brown. She then moved on to dance with United Ballet Theatre under the direction of Joseph Gatti.She has guested with many companies and has done many roles such as: The Sugar plum fairy, The Dew Drop Fairy, and Clara in The Nutcracker, The White Rabbit in Alice in Wonderland, and Kitri in an excerpt from Don Quixote. She is currently dancing under Emergence Dance and Dawn Branch Works, as well as freelancing as a dancer and is also a published model.
An Indiana native, she began her ballet training under Suzann Delay. She earned a degree in Ballet with an outside field in Kinesiology from Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music under the direction of Michael Vernon and the late Violette Verdy. She danced three seasons with Ballet Theatre of Indiana, performing in ballets such as Giselle (Giselle) and Sarah Farnsley’s Absolution. Her last several Decembers have been filled performing in the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra’s Yuletide Celebration as a dancer and featured artist. Megan has also performed with groups such as Ballet Initiative and Crossroads Dance Indy around central Indiana. Megan is thrilled to continue her dancing in Orlando in her first season with Emergence Dance Company.
Hi, my name is Cassidy Karins! I’m currently a sophomore at UCF studying for my entertainment management major and my dance minor. I was born in Florida and was raised in Hawaii. I started dancing when I was 12 and have trained in many styles since then. I started my competition training in 10th grade and have had a passion to pursue dance ever since.
Toria Gobel began her dance journey in Milan, IN at the age of 3. She graduated with a Bachelors in Fine Arts in Dance, Performance and Choreography at Ohio University in 2022. Along with her degree, she also received a minor in marketing and a certificate in entrepreneurship. Her other studies include pedagogy, stage management, stage tech and stagehand work, Laban Movement Analysis, modern, jazz, hip-hop, contemporary, ballet, African dance and some Kinesiology. She has worked with many acclaimed choreographers and artists such as Alexandra Beller, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Brian Brooks and David Dorfman Dance Company.
Tiffany Forsythe, a native of Virginia began dancing at the age of 6 at the Lakewood
Dance & Music Center and continued her training at Old Donation Center for the Gifted,
Governor’s School of the Arts, In The Spotlight School of Dance where she was a
member of the Junior and Senior Dance Company, and Norfolk Academy under the
close supervision of Elbert Watson a formal principal dancer of the Alvin Ailey Dance
Company. Tiffany began her professional dance career by earning a full scholarship to George
Mason University’s School of Dance Program in Fairfax, VA and has entertained at
Busch Gardens Williamsburg Theme Park and Disney’s Animal Kingdom.
Since relocating to Orlando, FL, she has trained at The Center For Contemporary
Dance, Central Florida Ballet, Russian Ballet Orlando, and Underground Movement in
addition to performing with local dance companies including Moore Dance Project and
Dawn Branch Works. Tiffany is excited to continue her dance journey with Emergence Dance Company.
Meagan has been living and breathing dance since the age of 3. She always leaned on dance to be her way of coping and letting her body express herself. She strives to be her best self, while continuing to grow more and more everyday. Meagan grew up in Orlando, while competing globally in America and Canada. She spent time moving around studios until she found Focus as her true home. From then on she was named Intrigue’s True Performer, won numerous awards for her performances, danced for festivals around Orlando and her community, performed at Orlando Magic halftime, has begun choreographing for her home studio, starred in dance storytelling videos for “Three Hearts Dance”, and took on a huge leadership role. Her favorite part of her whole dance career is being a leader and expressing her passion to younger dancers. Now, she is currently teaching and sprouting her wings in Orlando, sharing her love for dance. She is so honored to be apart of the Focus Family as a staff member and teacher, assistant, and company choreographer. She has also won multiple choreography awards, and has a background of social media marketing for Focus, and dancing/ performing with “Emergence Dance Company”. Meagan takes true pride in giving and loving her dancers, while expressing herself in performance.
Katarina Yuhas started dancing in West Palm Beach at age 8. She has trained in ballet, contemporary ballet, pointe, modern, jazz, contemporary jazz, tap, lyrical, and hip hop. She moved to Orlando in 2018 and has a minor in dance from University of Central Florida, and is finishing her Bachelor of Arts, and is currently working toward an Associate of Science in physical therapy assistance with Seminole State College. She works for University Performing Arts Centre as their office manager and a teacher.
Contemporary Hip Hop with Zoey Cruz
When: Tuesday, OCt. 10th
Time: 8:30-9:45 PM
Cost: $10 online, $13 at the door
Location:
University Performing Arts Centre
160 Alexandria Blvd, Oviedo, FL 32765